Return to 2002: Freestyle Superstar

Chapter 358 The east is not bright and the west is bright

What is the name of "Chinese Second Brother"?

Why did Chen Ran think of the second brother "Director of Anorectal Department" hyena in the African grassland when he heard this title?

After Zeng Shaoxuan heard this title, he couldn't laugh or cry. He even laughed at himself: "The gap between the second brother and the first brother is a bit big."

"It doesn't matter, there is a big gap between the second brother and the third brother!" A sports reporter continued to console him.

But who is the third brother?

Zhu Benqiang or newcomer Li Zhe?

However, judging from the current situation, no matter who among them is the third brother, there is indeed a huge gap between them and the second brother Zeng Shaoxuan.

He has already won a tournament and had experience in the Masters.

If this kind of resume is placed on Douyin or Xiaohongshu in future generations, he will become a tennis celebrity who is making money every day.

Chen Ran also came over, shook hands with Zeng Shaoxuan, and congratulated him on entering the first Masters in his career.

"I think your first Grand Slam main draw won't be too far away."

Seeing the other party's complacent look also reminded Chen Ran of himself last year.

But whenever he heard some comments from the media, he always felt something was strange.

The 23-year-old Zeng Shaoxuan is a newcomer to the tour stage, but the 18-year-old himself is already a senior on the tour.

Luck seemed to continue to favor Zeng Shaoxuan. During the 96-to-64 match, he was lucky enough to meet a player who was also a qualifier.

The two fought in three sets and two tie-breaks, and Zeng Shaoxuan was extremely lucky to win the game.

Therefore, in this competition, Zeng Shaoxuan not only ushered in his first Masters main event, but also incredibly won his first victory.

Even CCTV, which was so excited, made a report on this, titled "Under the leadership of Chen Ran, Chinese men's tennis began to blossom in many aspects."

As the No. 32 seed in the tournament, Chen Ran, like the other top players, has the right to advance directly to the second round.

However, compared to Zeng Shaoxuan's fiery state, he seems to have not yet entered the best game condition.

Chen Ran and Swiss brother Wawrinka fought in three sets and won 2-1 with difficulty.

三盘比赛分别是3比6、6比4和7比5，他甚至赢球的总局数也仅仅比瓦林卡多出了一局而已，并未展现出新科澳网冠军和世界第一的风采。

Even many foreign media are joking that after Chen Ran was very lucky to win the Australian Open, it seems that he has taken a rest and has not yet entered the rhythm of the game.

Also in the second round, Zeng Shaoxuan was no longer so lucky and was eliminated by French star Grosjean.

However, what is a little surprising is that this game was not a 0-2 sweep. He actually won one of the sets, and only lost 4-6 in the final set.

Chen Ran seemed to have regained some form in the third round, easily defeating South African veteran Ferreira 2-0 and advancing to the top 32.

But something unexpected happened.

When the outside world expected Chen Ran to replicate the glory of last year's "Sunshine Double Championship", he actually lost.

The person who defeated Chen Ran was none other than the famous Russian general Safin.

He has been in great form since his comeback at the Australian Open, and also won the Dubai 500.

Even in the first round of the Australian Open, Chen Ran was lucky to win.

This time, on the court of the Indian Wells Masters, the Russian Tsar, with his excellent competitive form and fiery touch, defeated Chen Ran very cleanly in two consecutive sets, blocking the opponent from the top eight. .

Throughout the game, he always took the absolute initiative.

Suddenly, the entire tennis world was shaken.

The Russian Tsar is back! Because everyone discovered that Chen Ran had recovered somewhat in the third round and suppressed the South African star Ferreira from beginning to end.

Many people firmly believed that Chen Ran was still the top favorite in this tournament, but as a result, he didn't even make it to the quarterfinals.

Many Chinese fans began to complain, why did they meet Safin so early?

Although Safin has just won the Dubai 500, his ranking is still outside the top 100 in the world. He uses a protected ranking, so it is normal for the two sides to meet in the fourth round.

"Can he still maintain his No. 1 position in the world?"

Many Chinese media have raised questions.

Chen Ran finally extended the number of weeks as the world's number one to 40 weeks, only 43 weeks away from the 3 weeks of the Brazilian star Kuerten.

As long as he surpasses Kuerten, the cumulative number of weeks ranked No. 1 in the world will enter the top ten in history.

"Oops, Chen Ran may not be able to keep the number one spot in the world."

"He is too trustworthy. He should participate in the Dubai 500. Not only will he get money, but he will also gain considerable points!"

Many Chen Ran fans showed concern.

In addition, many Chinese reporters were surprised to find that although Chen Ran was eliminated, two Chinese female players, Li Na and Zheng Jie, actually entered the top 16 of this event.

This made them overjoyed.

However, they are both 1000 events, the men's is called the Masters, and the women's is called the Crown.

incredible!

In the WTA's highest-level Crown Tournament, two Chinese golden flowers appeared among the top 16 players at the same time, which also made Chinese media reporters happy.

This means that even if Chen Ran is eliminated, they still don't have to go home so early and there is still news to report.

Due to Chen Ran's relationship, the popularity of tennis in China continues to rise, which has attracted more attention to these female tennis players than at the same time in their previous lives.

A foreign reporter asked Chen Ran maliciously: "You were eliminated, but two of your female compatriots entered the top 16. What do you think about this?"

"This is great!" Chen Ran was very open-minded. "We have trained together in the national team. I know their strength and their potential to become WTA first-line players. I am also happy with their achievements."

"In addition, I also hope that they can get some endorsements through this competition."

"After all, everyone works hard to play. In addition to bringing glory to the country, making more money is also the biggest motivation."

He even teased the director of the Tennis Management Center: "Director Sun should be very happy. Because the bonus they received after reaching the top 16 should not cause the Tennis Association to lose money this time."

The difference between them and Chen Ran is that all the expenses for these two people to participate in the competition are borne by the Tennis Association, and the latter will also take 50% of the after-tax bonus.

As for Chen Ran, he is entirely responsible for his own profits and losses.

However, because he is a seed player, many expenses are borne by the tournament organizing committee. Therefore, even if Chen Ran stops in the fourth round, his profit is still more than that of Li Na and Zheng Jie, who reached the top 16.

"What an unexpected surprise!"

"This is what is called when the east is not bright and the west is bright!"

At the press conference, CCTV reporters also sighed excitedly.

……

(End of this chapter)